Review

Reviewed Work(s): El Libro del conoscimiento de todos los reinos/The Book of Knowledge
of All Kingdoms: Edition, Translation, and Study by Nancy F. Marino
Review by: Judy B. McInnis
Source: Hispania, Vol. 84, No. 4 (Dec., 2001), pp. 798-799
Published by: American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/3657845
Accessed: 02-03-2024 10:36 +00:00

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798 HISPANIA 84 DECEMBER 2001

terizan por contrastes de extraordinaria sutile-

dates from the middle of the fifteenth centu
gives las
za y complejidad artistica. El critico estudia authority to Marino's assertion that
diferentes dimensiones del texto y loauthor was not a Franciscan friar and did not
ve como
actually
un proyecto ramoniano de afioranzas. Ram6n semake the journey described in the
20,000 word
dedic6 a explicar su estetica del contraste, y treatise. Marcos Jimenez de la
centr6 sus comentarios en las artes visuales. Espada, first editor of the work in 1877, argued
Texto de textos, como collage de reflexiones y Franciscan identity of the author and for
for the
memorias, Automoribundia es, como bien nos
the historicity of his journey, even though con-
dice el critico, esencialmente literario. temporary scholars pointed out that such a jour-
El capitulo IV, "Algunos antepasados litera- ney over all parts of the known world would have
rios," estudia los escritos ramonianos sobre required at least twenty years. While willing to
Nerval, Baudelaire y R6my de Gourmount. Elgrant the historicity of segments of the journey,
critico nos llama la atenci6n sobre el caracter they believed a large part was fantastical, a con-
autobiogrifico de estos textos, ya que para Ra- clusion endorsed by current scholarship, which
m6n, "biografiar a otro [era] a la vez also stresses the near impossibility of following
autobiografiarse" (15). El capitulo V, "Poethe routes suggested by the author. Marino re-
Ramonizado," continuia el enfoque sobre el g&- fers to the illustrations of Z to support her iden-
nero biografico a partir de un acercamientotification
a of the author as a lay person. She be-
Edgar Poe: El genio de America, publicado lieves en that he based the entire book upon con-
1953. Hoddie cuenta las vicisitudes del texto,temporary
y portolan charts or mappaemundi,
nos ofrece nuevas perspectivas sobre las tecni- which included notations about the ethnicities
cas de contraste ramonianas, base del humoris- and religions of the world's peoples as well as
mo, para presentarnos a Edgar Allan Poe e identifications of famous buildings and histori-
identificarse con 61 en lo que Ram6n llamaria cal and mythological events associated with vari-
"Biografia vital, que Ilora y rie en sus paginas, ous sites. The author supplies no information
que lleva por la vida hacia la muerte a un hom- that could not have been gleaned from these
bre de cierta epoca... biografia en rAfagas." sources, nor does he correct medieval miscon-
El capitulo VI, "Ramon y la novela," se dedi- ceptions which first-hand experience would
ca a comentar el papel desempefiado por el con- have brought to light.
traste en las novelas La vida blanca y negra His real contribution was to supply the coats-
(1917), El gran hotel (1922) y El torero Caracho of-arms of 119 cities and countries (reproduced
(1926). En este capitulo el critico retoma varios by Marino), plus eleven miniatures illustrating
de los puntos de vista analizados con anteriori- places, peoples or things. Marino traces the his-
dad en espera de "que el lector acabe por sentir- tory of heraldry from the end of the eleventh
se con Animos para hacer suya una justa perspec- century through the fourteenth century when
tiva sobre sus predilectas obras ramonianas" (17). cartographers began to use shields on
El libro se completa con una bibliografia se- mappaemundi to identify states and kingdoms.
lecta dividida en "Obras de Ram6n G6mez de la The author supplemented authentic shields with
Serna" y "Bibliografia critica." those of his own invention for unknown nations
Este valioso y bien documentado estudio deand rulers. His work, accepted as authentic in
James H. Hoddie contribuye a una mejor apre-the fifteenth century, was used as a geography
ciaci6n de la obra de Ram6n G6mez de la Serna. textbook and in the production of the Este World
Carlota Caulfield Map to provide information on the southwest-
Mills College ern coast of Africa.
Marino carefully collates all four extant
Marino, Nancy F. El Libro del manuscripts with Jimenez's edition and the de-
conoscimiento de todos los reinos/The Book
rivative 1912ofEnglish translation by Clements R.
Knowledge ofAll Kingdoms: Edition, Markham.
Transla- She notes variations not only in nar-
tion, and Study. Tempe, AZ: ArizonarativeCenter
but in the shields and miniatures. Her five-
for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, 1999.
page bibliography includes works about medi-
ISBN 0-86698-240-X. 143 + Ivii + 14eval
pp.literature, history, heraldry, travel, geogra-
phy, and cartography. The text also includes two
Marino provides the definitive text of indices: one for the comprehensive introduction
this anony-
mous geographical novel dating from and the last
another for the bilingual text, which prints
quarter of the fourteenth century. Spanish and English versions on facing pages.
The discov-
ery of the work's earliest manuscriptHer excellent
(Z), whichtranslation improves somewhat

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 REVIEWS 799

upon the pedestrian style of the original Span-

fiola que un diario de 380 piginas y formato
ish, for she varies cognates. For example, she el exito que esti teniendo el Cua-
grande tenga
translates "vicioso/a" both as "luxurious" (23, del ensayista y fil6sofo catalan
derno Amarillo
27) and "rich" (46). Here the English reader
Salvador Paniker. Publicado en el otofio del 2000
aware only of the word's pejorative connotation
estai ya a punto de salir en su segunda edici6n.
Este diario,
is enlightened. Marino criticizes the poverty of o dietario como lo llama el pro-
the author's vocabulary as well as the pio
dearth
autor, of
continua el dialogo interior ya estable-
personal anecdotes and reactions. Comparing
cido en sus anteriores libros Primer testamento
the work to other medieval travel accounts, she
(1985), Ensayos retroprogresivos (1987) y Segun-
da Memoria (1988), aunque en esta ocasi6n, las
finds it deficient in detailing the characteristics,
dress, habits, and religions of the peoples.
ideas poseen un plus de vivencia e inmediatez,
What Marino perceives only as "lack lograndose
of con- una intensidad de caracter
autobiografico.
cern for religious matters" (xl), I perceived as a El Cuaderno amarillo constitu-
surprising objectivity in the author, who
ye unaexem-
celebracion de la fragmentaci6n y el pas-
plifies convivencia at its finest. I found no de
tiche, evi-la provisionalidad y lo espontaneo. En
dence of religious or racial bias in this
unaccount.
periodo como el actual, en el que el tan trai-
The author describes the luxury and do abundance
y Ilevado termino posmodernidad produce
of Granada without condemning its Moorish
cierto cansancio, las reflexiones deliberadamen-
inhabitants, an objectivity repeated te inposmodernas
his de- de Paniker destilan una auten-
scriptions of Syria, Jordan, Antiocha, ticidad indiscutible. Se parte de una posici6n
and Judea.
He errs in placing Mohammed's conversion
compartidainya por una multitud de intelectuales:
Alcarahuan, but utters not a word of "la
condemna-
Patria, la Revoluci6n, la Historia, la Verdad,
tion against him, nor against the "veryel Partido.
free"En cuanto comienzan las palabras
Gazulans, ruled by a judge rather than con amayusculas
king. comienzan los crimenes"(63),
He notes the color of the people (blackpero se consigue desplegar, a lo largo de todo
or white)
without implying bias (49), just as heelnotes the posici6n vital/vitalista sin compro-
libro, una
religion of the people (Moor, Jew, Christian)
misos, en favor de la experiencia, hacia la aven-
without qualifiers. tura, la fragmentaci6n, el misticismo, el momen-
This armchair tourist waxes more to. Salvador Paniker lo define como una esteti-
eloquent,
the further removed he becomes from the ca de la resistencia, resistencia tambi6n contra
known world. Africa has a River of Gold where el cliche, contra lo excesivamente acad6mico,
huge ants unearth golden nuggets; the Africans contra el seguidismo.
grow ivory teeth along the river; Prester John Si ya de por si todo diario corresponde a un
rules over intelligent black Christians. The au- genero poco tipificado y, por tanto, poco estudia-
thor does not scorn even the people of Got and do, este que nos ocupa se construye como un
Magot, the Devil's kingdoms destined to take quilt dicursivo en el que se salpican las reflexio-
over the world. Their only commandment-"not nes filos6ficas y literarias con apuntes autobio-
to harm others" (81)-conforms to the "Golden graficos, anecdotas y boutades de notable inge-
Rule" most moderns would consider the es- nio. La voluntad de estilo del autor, que se
sence of civilization. He judges the white cyno- confiesa admirador de Azorin, se traduce en un
cephali the most vile and uncivilized men (83). lenguaje sincopado y de frases cortas, dando
The only hint of Christian proselytization occursuna sensaci6n de espontaneidad y sinceridad
in his account of Benascayt's conversion,que probablemente ha contribuido no poco a su
brought about by God's giving a military victory exito editorial. El genero diario no es aqui, como
to this Persian emperor. Marino's edition should en otros escritores, un afiadido al resto de la
prove an excellent tool for medieval specialists obra del autor, mis bien se nos presenta como
wishing to investigate further the geographies central a ella, como la via ideal de expresar y
of medieval texts. expresarse, como la manera de acercarse a "lo
Judy B. McInnis que en mi-dice PAniker-roza lo real: el momen-
University ofDelaware to presente"; y afiade: "si tuviera que escribir
una novela, seguiria el mismo patr6n, suprimi-
PAniker, Salvador. Cuaderno amarillo. ria la linealidad del tiempo, el texto incidiendo
Barcelona: Plaza & Janes, 2000. ISBN: 84-01-en el hipertexto, donde todo sucede simultanea-
34154-X. 379 pp. mente"(78). Queda claro, entonces, que no va-
mos a encontrar aqui un proyecto teleol6gico de
No es frecuente en la producci6n literaria espa- auto-buisqueda en el tiempo, ninguna clase de

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